Ancient Tales

Ancient Tales Commissioned by Fanfare Ellona Ell (NL) in honor of their centennial anniversary 2023 Ancient Tales was written by composer Kevin Houben in honour of the 100th anniversary of Fanfare Ellona, an authentic village association from Ell that values fun and fellowship. The piece is a musical representation of some of the legends and sagas that took place in and around the rural village of Ell, which probably owes its name to the many alder trees that defined the landscape around the 15th century. The somewhat mysterious opening of this work refers to the story of the sunken church in the Weerbroekskuil, where, according to the legend, bells are heard ringing on Christmas night and spirits in the form of lights are seen flying above the swamp. Presented here is the chorale that Houben composed for this work, which is woven like a thread throughout the composition in the form of melodic cells and motivic developments. Subsequently, the work continues with cheerful, energetic passages that are alternated with lyrical and more quiet sections. With some surprising melodic twists and metrical variations, Houben gives a nod to the turbulent history the citizens of Ell knew at the time of the 80-year war when the peasant country was plagued by marauding soldiers and gangs of thugs. By building the Ellerschans the people of Ell showed their resilience, to which the composer refers by constantly returning to cheerful and danceable themes which, thanks to the refreshing choice of metre, give the whole a cheerful character. Ancient Tales is a charming and energetic composition that triggers the enjoyment of playing of many orchestra members and will appeal to a wide audience. Moreover, the work offers every group of instruments sufficient challenge, making it suitable as a competition piece. Hence, Ancient Times was selected by Vlamo as compulsory test piece for the VLOF 2024.